One of the better books. Tragg takes on a more frontal role and is a good counter to Mason. I used to read many Mason novels and while I forgot the titles, I found the excitement of entangled plots to be quite irresistible. This work has some of that in it. ( )

"Mr. Mason, how can police be so absolutely brutal, so utterly unscrupulous?"
"They figure they're dealing with criminals and the ends justify the means."
"Well, that's no way to cope with crime. They lie and resort to brutality. They can't ever get people's respect doing that. They're almost as bad as the criminals." ( )

This novel starts a new era for Perry Mason - Sergeant Holcomb is gone, Lieutenant Tragg is the man Homicide detective (at least the one we see anyway) now. Additionally, it is the first novel (that I remember anyway) which does not start with Perry Mason - we start in the flower shop of Mildred Faulkner who has real problems with some options that she had forgotten existed. A rival is trying to get her business - so she calls Mason to ask for help. And our lawyer is brought into a story of greed, gambling and eventually murder. Except Mason is not Mildred's lawyer - he is her sister's. And Mildred is the one that really need a lawyer.

It is refreshing to have a detective that is at least as intelligent and quick thinking as Perry. He tries a few early moves but realizes that this is not the dump policeman anymore and things are evenly matched. And Tragg is ready to work with Perry when it is needed - instead of dismissing him all the time. Add illegal gambling salon and people that do not seem to be able to say the truth - and we are back on track with an interesting mystery.

I missed Drake - maybe because of Tragg and his surprisingly quick mind, Perry ends up doing most of the work that usually the detective does. We do see him occasionally but not as much as in the previous books. I hope that Gardner will manage to find the way to fit both Tragg and Drake together - more working minds make for a better book. ( )